


What's Hidden Beneath Might Just Surprise You

by constantconfusion14



Series: MLB Oneshots [3]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Gen, LadyNoir - Freeform, Ladynoir July 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-07-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:56:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25068772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/constantconfusion14/pseuds/constantconfusion14
Summary: My one shot for the Ladynoir July prompt "Disguises"
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: MLB Oneshots [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1765765
Comments: 8
Kudos: 105





	What's Hidden Beneath Might Just Surprise You

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this fic idea for months but only started writing it last night because I wanted to post it for today. I hope you enjoy it, thank you for reading!

Marinette tugged on the hem of her jumper, suddenly very insecure about her outfit. Alya had insisted she wear the Ladybug themed dress of her own design during their little outing to the park today. Having no believable excuse, Marinette eventually had to bend to her best friend’s will. 

“Girl, you look hot, okay? It’s been months since your breakup. Try to have fun teasing some random boys today. I’m not saying you should jump right into another relationship or anything. It’s just time you realize the power you have when you work dat ass” The redhead sent a wink with a chuckle. Marinette almost growled at her friend and shook her head. This whole thing was way outside her comfort zone. 

Luckily, it was an insanely sunny day outside which gave Marinette an excuse to wear both a sun hat and a pair of sunglasses. Unfortunately, Alya insisted on making the accessories match the red and black polka dotted dress. Marinette tried to focus on anything other than the fact that she looked too much like her alter-ego. 

There was no way this was going to work in her favor. 

“Girl, the line’s getting longer by the second. Would you mind getting the food for us while I save our spot at this picnic table? I don’t want to lose such a prime location.”

Marinette looked over at the temporary placement of Paris’s new most popular food truck, parked on the street near her house. Thus, the normally vacant-ish park was crowded beyond all belief. And although it was sweltering outside and she really didn’t want to wait in line, Marinette was starving. She looked back at Alya. “What do you want me to get you?”

“Just get two of whatever you order.” Marinette nodded in response, still not entirely happy with her situation. She turned her back, walking towards the ever-increasing crowd. Alya called after her “And don’t forget to work it!”

As soon as Marinette was out of ear shot, Alya turned her attention to the boys a few feet away from her. Nino was towing an incognito-Adrien behind him. “Nino, I swear there was no cat in that tree. I think you’re seeing things.” He finally pulled his eyes away from the tree and took notice of Alya sitting at the picnic table. “Hey Alya!”

The redhead bolted off her seat and hugged him, spewing out a quick “Hi!” before she started shoving him towards the food truck. “Sorry Adrien, I just really need to talk to Nino. Will you stand in line for us please? Thanks! If you get to the front of the line without us, just get us whatever!”

The blonde was thoroughly confused, but didn’t fight back and let himself get pushed forward. Nino called out behind her. “And remember what we talked about, bro! Try flirting with someone. Time to get back in the saddle!” Adrien shot a look back to his friend before turning away completely, going to stand in line. 

Alya plopped back down on the bench, speaking in a much softer tone to her boyfriend. “So far so good. Do you think they’ll recognize each other?”

Nino took a seat next to her. “Nah, they’re pretty oblivious to a lot of stuff. Especially dressed as they are, Marinette will have no idea she’s talking to Adrien and vice versa.”

“Good. That means no awkward friend-zoning going on. And you had the conversation with him?” She pressed. 

“Ew, dude, don’t make it sound like I had the talk with him. But yes. He’s going to try to flirt with the first girl he sees. Hopefully it’s Marinette. Did you do your part?” He gave Alya a taste of her own medicine and looked at her the same way she was looking at him.

Her facial expression feigned offense. “Ha. Boy. I invented this plan. Of course I did my part. Now, we watch.” She smiled cruelly and watched her plan move into action. 

Adrien was dressed in all black, going for an inconspicuous look, as suggested by Nino. It was the easiest way to get around without being swarmed by fans. He wore his black hoodie with the cat ears Ladybug had given him for Christmas one year, as it was the only thing he owned that didn’t have the Gabriel logo plastered all over it. Black sunglasses sat on his face as an extra precaution. 

He strolled up into line and found himself behind a girl dressed in a fashionable Ladybug-themed jumper. It was cute. Adrien looked the girl up and down from the back. She was cute too. As much as he tried to be polite, Adrien couldn’t stop his eyes from hovering over her curves. The blonde turned his head back to Nino and made eye contact. He made a small fist, extending his thumb towards the girl in front of him. Nino nodded excitedly. 

Adrien didn’t flirt. It just wasn’t in his repertoire. It had never worked with Kagami when they’d been together and he hadn’t tried it since. 

Luckily, Chat Noir was a pro with the ladies (or, he liked to think he was). So today, Adrien wasn’t going to be Adrien. He was going to channel his inner Chat Noir as much as possible in order to at least get one girl to smile at him for his fun-loving personality. He didn’t want to get a date because he was fashion model Adrien Agreste. He wanted to get a date because the person enjoyed who he was underneath the name. Although Nino’s plan was complicated, it might actually work. 

Adrien’s thoughts were interrupted when the girl in front of him dropped her handbag and failed to notice. Just like the rest of her outfit, it resembled the heroine of Paris. She must’ve been a huge fan to go all out like this. Adrien smiled. At least he had something in common with this girl. 

Well, here goes nothing. 

Being as Chat Noir-like as he could, Adrien scooped the bag up off the ground and stayed low in a half bow. He spoke grandly as if he were addressing royalty. “My lady, I believe you’ve dropped your purrse. Allow me to return it to you.” He offered a gentlemanly smile that might’ve come off a little creepy with sunglasses on. Oh well, too late to turn back now. 

When the voice sounded from behind her, Marinette froze instantly. It felt like she was a sleeper agent and this random stranger had spoken her trigger words. Her mind started moving a thousand miles a minute, trying to figure out why the boy sounded so familiar. But then she processed what he said and her entire body went numb for a few seconds. 

My lady?? Purrrse? 

Only one person in Paris could’ve possibly used both of those terms in a single sentence. And to her of all people. Marinette slowly turned around, her eyes finally falling on the blonde boy dressed in all black, a pair of sunglasses covering his eyes. “Chat?” she whispered aggressively. 

Now it was Adrien’s turn to panic. There was only one person who used that tone of voice with him; usually when he’d done something incredibly stupid or embarassing. Adrien tilted his head to get a better look at the girl in front of him. Her hair was down rather than in the ever-so recognizable pigtails. But, his hair changed with his transformation, didn’t it? Her’s must’ve too. 

Her eyes were hidden by a pair of red sunglasses and a sun hat did a good job of shielding the rest of her face. But there was almost no doubt in his mind that this was Ladybug. No one else could have possibly been giving him a death glare through a mask (of sorts). 

Adrien straightened up to his full height immediately, shoving her handbag back into her own hands. How was he supposed to respond? If he misunderstood the situation, he could totally out himself to a stranger. 

So he settled on a look of suspicion, narrowing his eyes at the girl. “And who might you be? He asked quietly. 

She sent him an incredulous look sprinkled with annoyance. “I’m the person that gave you that hoodie.”

The alarms that were already blaring in his head turned up to full volume. “Ladybug? What the hell are you doing here?” He whispered loudly. 

The girl looked around like a paranoid squirrel. She set her jaw and grabbed Adrien’s arm, dragging him out of the line and off to the side of the park that was a little less crowded. Once she stopped, she whipped around and began her lecture. “What am I doing here? What the hell are you doing here? And why are you dressed like Chat Noir?”

“I’m not-“ he stopped for a minute and looked down at his own outfit. Black shoes, black jeans, a black hoodie with cat ears and black sunglasses? Whoops. “Well, okay. That was an accident believe it or not. Besides, I’m not the only one dressed like a superhero.” Chat sent her a pointed glare. 

Now it was Ladybug’s turn to look really uncomfortable. “I, uh….ugh! I knew this was a bad idea. My friend convinced me to go out like this cause she liked the dress. How was I supposed to know you were going to find me as a civilian and flirt? And honestly Chat, puns have never worked with me and they’re never going to.”

“Hold up. My lie detector is suddenly going off the charts.” He motioned as if he were holding a metal detector and moved it towards Ladybug, making faster beeping sounds the closer it got to her. She rolled her eyes and looked away. Chat dropped the act and spoke to her seriously. “Ok, in all honesty, I didn’t know that was you. I’m a terrible flirt as a civilian and I guess I channeled Chat Noir a little too much.”

One of Ladybug’s eyebrows twitched as if she were thinking. She turned her head back towards him. “But...the pun. And you said my lady. That’s my nickname.” Her voice sounded almost...territorial?

Adrien was officially lost. Did she or did she not want him to be flirting with her? He tried to do damage control. “I told you I channeled Chat Noir a little too much back there. But your ladybug luck must’ve saved me because technically I used the nickname on you which means I’ve never used it on another girl which means it’s still your nickname and yours alone.” He sent a smile, hoping Ladybug would take pity on him. 

“What are you doing here anyway?” She asked, changing the subject. 

“Same thing as you, I’m assuming. Trying out this new food truck. My friends brought me along and tried to get me to learn how to flirt while I was here. You saw how well that went.”

Marinette’s mind was racing a thousand miles per minute. It was too much of a coincidence. She was brought here by Alya to try and tantalize boys into flirting with her. Chat was brought here by friends to flirt with a girl. It was far too suspicious to be pure chance. But there was no way Alya could have set Ladybug and Chat Noir up together...right? 

Had she tried to set up their civilian selves by accident? Marinette tensed at the thought, getting a little too close to information she should be avoiding. She looked up and saw the redhead in the distance sending strange looks towards the duo. But then she pointed back to the line and Marinette realized her initial mistake. 

There were so many more people now and she’d lost both of their spots by pulling them off to the side. She might as well do what she actually came here to do, regardless of her partner’s sudden appearance. Ladybug turned her attention back to Chat. “Well, do you want to wait in line with me?”

He lit up. “I’d love to!”

The pair walked back over to the end of the line and stood side by side. “So…” the girl suddenly felt incredibly awkward, which was an unfamiliar feeling in her current company. Standing in silence with Chat had never been awkward before. They knew each other far too well to fall victim to small talk. 

“I, uh...I thought you had a girlfriend?”

Chat looked up to her sadly. “Did. Not anymore. I got dumped from my first relationship and uh...I didn’t take it very well.” He smiled sheepishly at her hoping she wouldn’t press. 

But this was his best friend, of course she was going to press. “Oh?” She raised an eyebrow. “Do tell.”

Adrien breathed out a chuckle. “You know, the wallowing in self pity for weeks, being a total party pooper to all my friends, crying every time I had to delete a picture of her. The worst part? I couldn't even eat my feelings away with ice cream because it wasn’t part of my-“ he stopped for a second. He couldn’t reveal he was on a model’s diet. With his weight and height, it would’ve been suspicious. Ladybug noticed when he trailed off but didn’t comment on it. 

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that, Chat. Honestly, I had no idea. But now that I think about it, you have seemed a little bummed these past few weeks. Are you doing better now?” There it was. Ladybug’s constant need to help and check up on others. He loved her for it. 

“Much. Thank you. Anyway, how’s your relationship going?” Chat tried to move the conversation off himself. 

Marinette took a step forward in line, pondering if she should tell her partner the truth. She decided there couldn’t be any harm in it. “We uh...also broke up. Me. I broke up with him.” Her voice was sadder than she’d wanted it to be and Chat picked up on it immediately. 

“Are you okay?” She couldn’t see his eyes, but she knew the exact facial expression that matched that tone of voice. 

“Yeah, I’m working through it. It’s just that he-he was moving on and growing. I wasn’t. I was stuck in place and couldn’t grow with him. It was the right thing to do for him, and probably me, too. I just sucks, ya know?”

“Yeah, I feel that, sister. Ka-uh...my ex left me because she said I wasn’t committed enough to her. She said she felt like there was someone else, even though there wasn’t. Never in a thousand years would I ever do something like cheat. But I couldn’t convince her in the end.”

They moved a few more steps up in the line, both of them lost in thought. Marinette was surprised at the similarities. At times, Luka asked Marinette if there was someone else or if she still had feelings for Adrien. She always answered no to both questions, but the answers never felt sincere. Marinette moved her head back up and looked at Chat. A realization dawned on her. 

“Do you think I cheated on him?”

His blonde hair whipped around inside his hoodie. “I’m sorry?” He asked, wondering if he’d heard her right. 

“It’s just, I always had to come up with terrible excuses to go off and fight akumas. Frequently enough to put that thought in his mind. And when I was Ladybug, I was running around with a boy in a leather catsuit, sometimes ending up on top of one another and usually bantering with him in some way. Does that count as emotionally cheating?” 

Silence. Despite there being a large gap between them and the people in front of them, Chat didn’t move forward until Ladybug pushed him gently on the back. He was looking directly at the ground, seemingly lost in thought. 

After a few minutes of silence, he finally spoke up. “I-I don’t know. I never intended to cheat. And I never wanted her to feel that way. But unexplained absences and a friendship with a mystery girl I can’t talk about didn't paint the best picture.” He finally raised his eyes and looked at the girl standing next to him. Although a good portion of his face was blocked, a distantly familiar emotion ran through Ladybug. 

She was transported back to late night patrols when he would confess his love for her over and over again. He was giving her the same look right now. But...that was a year ago. He didn’t still have feelings, did he?

Or was she projecting her own sudden realization on him? Marinette had to end things with Luka because something didn’t feel right. She was convinced she hadn’t let go of Adrien and it wasn’t fair to stay with Luka when she wasn’t fully his. 

But now, looking at her partner, she couldn’t help but feel like she might’ve mistaken her feelings for a different blonde boy. “We’re a mess, aren’t we?”

He chuckled, and it was a beautiful sound. “Plagg likes to call me a certified disaster. He says as the god of destruction, he’s seen a lot of messes. But nothing compared to that of my life.”

At that, Ladybug snorted. It was an ugly sound, completely unattractive and she regretted it instantly. But she couldn’t take it back and Chat heard it as soon as it left her throat. He stared at her for only a moment before erupting into laughter. He held his sides with one arm and kept the glasses on his face with the other hand. 

“I'm sorry! That was...just so...cute!” He wheezed out between giggling fits. And although Ladybug was annoyed that he had the audacity to laugh at her, the heroine of Paris, she couldn’t help but hear a familiarity in his laughter. Something that stirred deep in her heart and made it flutter faster that it should’ve. 

Chat finally composed himself and wiped a tear from his eye. “Oh...that’s why I love you, LB. You never fail to cheer me up.” He turned his attention to the menu posted on the side of the truck as they were up next. “What do you want? This one’s on me.”

Marinette tried to argue, saying that she had to get food for her friend, too. But Chat wasn’t having any of it. “No. Seriously, my job pays me more than I need. I’ve got plenty of money. Now, tell me what you want so I can buy my beautiful partner some lunch.” 

The woman taking their orders smiled. “What a gentleman. If I may, you two make a gorgeous couple.” Both heroes blushed but neither put up an argument. Marinette reasoned that it was just easier to let the woman believe that rather than try to explain what the actual scenario was. 

Finally, she gave in and let Chat buy five orders of the special for the day. Two for Ladybug and her friend and three for him and his own friends. They waited off to the side for a moment before receiving their food in little to-go boxes and were free to their own devices. 

Ladybug stood in front of her partner, feeling an awkward ‘goodbye’ lurking on the horizon. She tried to form a thought before Chat beat her to it. 

He held the food in his left arm and extended his right hand out towards the girl. “Pound it? I don’t really know any other way to say goodbye to you.” He sent an adorable, insecure smile and Marinette tried to get a hold of herself before she became a stuttering mess. 

She met his fist with hers. “Pound it, kitty. See ya around.” 

Before she could make another move, a figure tackled her from behind in a hug, almost making her drop the food. Marinette looked up and noticed Nino standing behind Chat, smiling grandly as he placed his hand on the blonde’s shoulder. He looked extremely panicked at the contact. Marinette twisted her head around to see the familiar red curls of Alya bouncing on her shoulder. 

Oh no. 

Oh no oh no oh no oh no.

“Oh yes, girl!” Alya responded to thoughts Marinette hadn’t realized she’d said out loud. “I pulled a fast one on you. Both of you!” She looked up towards Chat who looked like he wanted to bury himself in the ground. 

“Marinette, meet Adrien Agreste, your mystery man. Adrien? This is the smoking hot Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I swear you’re each other’s soul mates. Hopeful you realize that now, too.”

Alya was expecting shock, surprise, maybe a little anger and a whole lot of love. 

Instead, her two best friends dropped the containers of food on the ground in perfect unison. Neither moved a muscle, just staring directly into the face of the other. They remained absolutely silent for a while, both lost to the depths of an existential crisis. 

If Alya learned anything that day, it was that disguises could either be a blessing or a curse. (A few years later, she finally decided it was the former).


End file.
